'The Masque of Anarchy'

A poem written by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822) in 1819. In August of that year, a huge but peaceful crowd of 80,000 assembled in St Peter’s Fields in Manchester to listen to speakers who were demanding parliamentary reform. When the unprovoked cavalry charged the throng, many innocent people were killed or seriously injured. Increased state repression ensued. The event became known as the 'Peterloo Massacre’, and inspired Shelley’s response the following month. His poem was composed in broadsheet ballad form; because of its controversial content, it was published only posthumously in 1832.

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In August 1819 dozens of peaceful protestors were killed and hundreds injured at what became known as the Peterloo Massacre. Ruth Mather examines the origins, response and aftermath of this key early 19th century political event.